This Day in Music

February 10th

Northern Los Angeles County is the setting for two of the biggest albums ever released within the greater Rock and Roll genre, Henry Mancini finally makes an appearance in this blog, we must now refer to Tommy Walker as “Sir,” and Elvis becomes a cop, all on this busy day in music.

Releases

1971: American singer-songwriter Carole King releases her landmark second studio album, "Tapestry." King had already been a successful songwriter, co-writing a string of hits for other artists throughout the 1960's.

After moving to Laurel Canyon in 1968, she released her first solo album in 1970 titled "Writer" to tepid critical reviews and limited commercial success. "Tapestry" would be her breakout work, with the LP receiving universal critical acclaim. Writing for the Village Voice, Robert Christgau remarked that her "...voice, free of technical decorum, would liberate female singers." Jon Landau of Rolling Stone wrote that she had created a record of "...surpassing personal-intimacy [sic] and musical accomplishment." It received 5-star and A-ratings across the board from professional reviewers, and won four Grammy awards, including Album of the Year, Song of the Year ("I Feel the Earth Move"), and Record of the Year ("It's Too Late").

With “It’s Too Late” and “I Feel the Earth Move” reaching No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, the release was bound for great commercial success. It reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200, No. 1 on the Canada RPM Albums chart, and No. 4 on the UK Albums list. It was certified 14x Platinum in the US, double-Platinum in the UK, 8x Platinum in Australia, and has estimated worldwide sales of over 25 million copies, placing it as the 48th best-selling album of all time. It's listed at No. 25 on Rolling Stone's 2020 edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

1978: Van Halen, those hard-partying, hard-rockers from Pasadena, California, release their seminal debut studio album, simply titled "Van Halen."

A three-track tape financed by Gene Simmons of Kiss failed to secure the band a record contract, but landed them gigs at West Hollywood's famous Whiskey a Go-Go club. It was there that they caught the ear of Ted Templeton from Warner Bros., who would sign them to the label and produce the debut plus their next five releases.

"Van Halen" re-invigorated the 1970's hard rock scene as works by Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, and Uriah Heep were fading in quality, and it had been two years since the great hard rock releases, “Presence” by Led Zeppelin, the monster eponymous debut by Boston, and the heavy rock masterpiece, "Rising" by Rainbow.

The album was an instant commercial success. Peaking at No. 19 on the Billboard 200, it sold over 10 million copies and was certified Diamond by the RIAA on August 7, 1996. Critics, however, were nonplussed, with Christgau remarking, "For some reason Warners wants us to know that this is the biggest bar band in the San Fernando Valley...the term becomes honorific when the music belongs in a bar. This music belongs on an aircraft carrier."

With the exception of Eddie Van Halen's innovative guitar stylings and brother Alex’s phenomenal drumming, it's true that the band was not particularly original. The reason many regard this album as one of the standout debuts in rock history is the sheer talent of the players, who perform that bar music better than anyone else. The album sits at No. 292 on Rolling Stone's 2020 edition of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.

Events

1962: "Music from the Film Score Breakfast at Tiffany's" by Henry Mancini & Orchestra becomes the No. 1 album in the US, propelled by a No. 1 hit, the Grammy and Oscar-winning song, "Moon River," performed beautifully by Audrey Hepburn. The record would be certified Gold in the US only eight months after its release.

People

2005: Legendary The Who frontman Roger Daltry becomes the latest rock star to be honoured as a Commander of the Most Excellent Order of The British Empire (CBE), and henceforth referred to as “Sir Roger.” CBE is the third level of peerage in the Order, but only the highest two, Knight Grand Cross (GBE) and Knight Commander (KBE), bestow a knighthood on the recipient. There is however a special non-order category of knighthood that is awarded in certain circumstances. The recipients of this honour include Sir Mick Jagger and Sir Paul McCartney.

The Daily Elvis

1976: The Memphis Police Reserve appoints Elvis to the rank of Captain in the service.

Pictured: Carole King bangin’ on her old piano. Getting in tune to the straight and narrow?